Watching Aqua's hands emit blue light, Voss's face instantly turned green.
"Holy crap! She's really going to cast a flood spell!" Voss looked around the dilapidated room in horror.
"This broken house can't withstand such a commotion!"
If Aqua were to cast a flood spell here, setting aside everything else, just the compensation for damages would bankrupt him.
Not to mention there were other tenants downstairs—how would he explain that then?
"Tom! Jerry! Stop her!" Voss shouted.
Upon hearing this, Tom and Jerry immediately understood the gravity of the situation. The two little ones exchanged glances and instantly entered battle mode.
Tom darted towards the storage cabinet, expertly pulling out a sturdy rope. Jerry, on the other hand, flanked from the other side, ready to cooperate with Tom's actions.
"Great power of water, heed my call—"
Aqua was still concentrating on chanting the spell, completely unaware of the danger behind her.
Tom, holding the rope, gestured for Jerry to attack from the left.
Jerry nodded, leaped from the coffee table, and pounced directly onto Aqua's left arm.
"Eh? Little mouse, what are you doing?" Aqua felt Jerry climb onto her, but still didn't stop casting.
Just then, Tom appeared from behind, the rope in his hand accurately lassoing Aqua's arms like a lariat.
"What?!" Aqua was startled, "What do you two want to do?"
Tom pulled hard, forcing Aqua's arms to her sides, and the blue magical light instantly dissipated.
"Let this goddess go!" Aqua struggled desperately, "You little animals dare to disrespect a goddess!"
Jerry cooperated with Tom's movements, nimbly moving around Aqua to help secure the rope.
The two little ones worked seamlessly together, clearly having practiced this "binding technique" often.
"Wrap it three times, tie a knot, then finish with a bow." Voss directed from the side, "Yes, just like that!"
In less than a minute, Aqua was tied up securely on the floor, the rope wrapped so tightly that she couldn't even move her fingers, only able to wiggle like a caterpillar.
"You… what are you doing?!" Aqua's eyes widened.
"Quickly release this goddess!"
Tom clapped his hands, looking proudly at his masterpiece. Jerry made a victory gesture in front of Aqua.
"Now do you know how powerful I am?" Voss squatted in front of Aqua, "I told you this is my territory, you have to listen to me."
"Bastard!" Aqua's face turned red with anger, "You actually dared to kidnap a goddess! This is blasphemy against the gods!"
"Do you submit?" Voss looked directly into Aqua's eyes.
"No!" Aqua raised her head, "This goddess will never yield to mortals!"
Voss looked at Aqua's stubborn refusal to admit defeat, and his temples started throbbing again. This idiotic goddess's stubbornness exceeded his imagination.
"Still not submitting, huh?" Voss stood up, a dangerous smile appearing on his face, "Then I'll let you experience the cruelty of reality."
With that, Voss slowly began to unbuckle his belt.
"You… what do you want to do?" Aqua saw Voss's actions, a hint of unease flashing in her eyes.
"Hehehe, of course, it's to educate disobedient bad goddesses. (～￣▽￣)～" Voss said as he unbuckled his belt.
"Since you're unwilling to listen obediently, I can only resort to special measures."
"Wait! You pervert! Don't come over here!" Aqua finally realized something, her voice starting to tremble.
"What do you want to do to this goddess?! ＞﹏＜"
Voss didn't answer, continuing his actions. After unbuckling his belt, his hand moved to his pants zipper.
"No! Absolutely not!" Aqua struggled desperately, but the rope was tied too tightly.
"You vulgar mortal! You actually want to do such a thing to a noble goddess!"
Tom and Jerry watched, dumbfounded. Although they didn't quite understand what Voss intended to do, judging by Aqua's reaction, it was clearly very effective.
"Help! Someone's going to bully a goddess!" Aqua started shouting, "Somebody! Come and save me!"
Voss's hand was already on the zipper, poised to pull it down.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Aqua's voice changed pitch, "Calm down! Let's talk this over properly!"
"Now you're scared?" Voss stopped his actions, "Do you submit?"
"I… I…" Aqua looked at Voss's hand still on the zipper, tears almost welling up. இ௰இ
"You big pervert! Scum! Beast!"
Voss continued to make the motion of taking off his pants.
"Nooooo!" Aqua finally broke down, tears streaming down her face.
"I submit! Can't I just submit! Wuwuwu… o(TヘTo)"
Seeing Aqua crying uncontrollably, Voss finally stopped his actions and re-buckled his belt.
"Wouldn't it have been easier to just do this earlier?" Voss clapped his hands, "You had to make me get serious."
"Wuwuwu… you big meanie…" Aqua sobbed, "Bullying a goddess will bring retribution…"
Tom and Jerry exchanged glances, both seeing shock in each other's eyes. Voss's move was too cruel, even a goddess was scared to tears.
"Alright, alright, stop crying." Voss looked at Aqua crying like a child, feeling a little soft-hearted.
"I wasn't really going to do anything to you, just scare you a little."
"Wuwuwu… you're just a big pervert…" Aqua continued to cry.
"This goddess's innocence was almost gone…"
"Your innocence is perfectly fine, I'm not interested in idiots." Voss rolled his eyes.
"Now are you willing to listen to me?"
Aqua sniffled, nodding tearfully, "Listen… listen to you…"
"That's right." Voss nodded in satisfaction, then said to Tom, "Tom, untie the rope."
Tom walked over and skillfully untied the rope. Once free, Aqua immediately shrank into the corner, watching Voss with wary eyes.
"Remember the three rules I just mentioned." Voss said seriously, "First, no using magic casually. Second, no going around proclaiming yourself a goddess. Third, no causing trouble."
"K-k-knew it…" Aqua replied softly, clearly not yet recovered from the earlier fright.
Jerry looked at Aqua huddled in the corner, and with some sympathy, walked over and gently patted her hand with his small paw, offering comfort.
"Little mouse… you're so nice…" Aqua hugged Jerry, tears starting to fall again.
"Only you care about this goddess…"
Tom also walked over. Although he had participated in the "subduing operation," seeing Aqua cry so miserably, he felt a little guilty.
He gently patted Aqua's leg with his paw, expressing apology.
"You're all good kids." Aqua sobbed, "Only that big meanie is a pervert…"
Voss heard this and a few black lines appeared on his forehead again. But seeing Aqua finally settling down, he didn't bother with these minor things.
"Alright, now let's talk about your living arrangements here." Voss sat on the sofa, "First, you'll temporarily live in the living room, the sofa is your bed."
"What?!" Aqua's eyes widened, "Make this goddess sleep on the sofa? That's too…"
Voss made a motion to unbuckle his belt.
"I'll sleep on the sofa! The sofa is great!" Aqua immediately changed her tone, "This goddess loves sofas the most!"
"Very good." Voss nodded in satisfaction, "Secondly, you have to share some of the housework. Although you are a goddess, in this house, everyone is equal."
Aqua wanted to protest, but seeing Voss's gaze, she obediently nodded again.
"Finally, if you behave well, I will consider improving your living conditions." Voss said, "But if you cause trouble…"
"No trouble! Absolutely no trouble!" Aqua quickly promised, "This goddess will be very well-behaved!"
Looking at Aqua's startled bird-like appearance, Voss secretly felt pleased.
It seemed this deterrent education method was quite effective—at least in the short term, this idiotic goddess probably wouldn't dare to act up.
Tom and Jerry also breathed a sigh of relief. Although the process was a bit thrilling, they finally managed to get this troublesome new tenant to settle down.
"That's that then." Voss stood up, "I'll go prepare lunch, you three get along well in the living room."
With that, Voss walked towards the kitchen, leaving Aqua, Tom, and Jerry staring at each other.